The new Romance Interior Design Trend (and where to get it)

At the start of the year I detailed the top five interior design trends for 2018 (you can check out that post here if you wanna see them all). One of the looks that’s already taking the world by storm is the romance interior design trend. It’s hit hard and fast, actually, and all the brands seem to be getting on board with it.

You’ve been getting into it too. Any photo I show on my Instagram feed that features elements of this trend always gets loads of likes. So I thought it high time I expand on the romance trend itself so you can figure out how to rock the look at your place. Because it is pretty lush, let’s face it.

The good news: you can embrace smaller elements of the romance interior design trend if you don’t wanna overhaul your entire home! Better news: The trend will work in with your existing decor!

Oh, and if you love the bedding above, it’s coming soon to Linen House.

The Romance Interior Design Trend

Love this moment from ArtiStudio. Click for more.

Where did it come from?

There’s been a move toward a darker, richer and moodier palette for homes in the last 12 months. A lot of the trend forecasts from Europe in recent years have been calling out plum, prune, burgundy and maroon as the colours to embrace for your interior.

Of course, here in Australia we tend to see what our Euro neighbours are doing and then put our own spin on it. We tweak it and make it our own. And we cherry pick the elements we do and don’t like from these forecasts.

We also do it slowly. Sometimes really slowly. We don’t see a trend and run with it en masse. We like to mull the trend over for a while. We’ll wait until we see it in magazine shoots and in our Pinterest feeds and we’ll embrace it slowly.

It’s often about a year after the trend is big in Europe that it starts to hit stores here. And then we pounce on it because we have a better idea of how to make it work for us.

That’s what’s happened with the romance interior design trend. And now it’s everywhere.

Nathan and Jac rocking a deep burgundy bedroom

The Pantone delay, and dusty pink

Pantone’s colour of the year for 2015, Marsala, is a perfect example of what I mean about our slow embrace.

I remember when the colour was released at the time, everyone turned their nose up at it. Red tones were not on our radar when it came to our interiors. The mags tried it in a few shoots, but it didn’t quite take off or grab our attention. Nathan and Jac did is awesomely above, but I reckon we weren’t quite ready to embrace this palette last year.

While this was happening, we were all rocking that white and dusty pink scheme at home. Many of us still are. But it seems we got to a stage where we wanted some variety. A little elegance. Something moodier to pair with the pink and white to ground it a little. And then tones like Marsala begun to be embraced. Then some maroons.

And here we are; now fully embracing these dark shades.

Ellie Cashman’s Influence (and The Block)

Ellie Cashman’s large-scale floral wallpaper designs have been popular for years overseas, but only recently have we seen them rolled out in Australia. Once these overseas images begun to hit our Pinterest and Instagram feeds, we realised how breathtaking deep floral tones could be en masse.

And then last season’s The Block series showcased dark floral wallpaper in one of the master bedrooms. And that was that; we all fell hard for the romance interior design trend.

So, essentially, the romance trend merges deep red and purple tones with loads of florals in what is a rich and feminine vibe. But it’s not quite as dark here as it is overseas.

A moment from Kmart’s new range.

What makes the Trend?

The romance interior design trend is definitely made up of some specific characteristics. Below I’ll list out what I’ve found to make up the trend locally here in Australia. It’s a slightly different take on what people are doing with it overseas. Here’s what makes the trend so special for us Aussies:

Textures like faux fur and velvet give the space a sumptuous, tactile feel

But I don’t like Dark Rooms!?

For those of you who don’t like dark spaces and have a mostly white and soft grey base palette, fear not. You can still work the romance interior design trend at your place on a smaller scale.

Rich maroon and burgundy tones, as well as plum and prune, will all work against a lighter backdrop (as seen above from Kmart).

So if your walls are white, hang up some dark floral artworks. If your sofa is grey, throw on some prune cushions. And if your bedside tables are white or blonde timber, chuck a red floral bedding set on top of your bed and you’re good to go!

It’s actually better, if you’re feeling wary, to go slow with this trend and introduce some small pieces like cushions and throws. See how they play with the pieces in your room and gain the confidence to rock richer tones over time.

So many stores are stocking products from the romance interior design trend at low prices. So you can experiment without the cost!

Shop the Romance Interior Design Trend

If you’re loving the romance interior design trend and want to pick up some pieces for your home in this vibe, simply click on the links below. You’ll be directed to the retailer websites where you can shop up a storm!

Stay Across all the Latest Homewares Releases!

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